{"id":289335,"date":"2026-02-23T15:53:39","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T20:53:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?post_type=short-read&p=289335"},"modified":"2026-02-23T15:53:43","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T20:53:43","slug":"state-of-the-union-2026-where-americans-stand-on-key-issues-facing-the-nation","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2026\/02\/23\/state-of-the-union-2026-where-americans-stand-on-key-issues-facing-the-nation\/","title":{"rendered":"State of the Union 2026: Where Americans stand on key issues facing the nation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Vice
Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson applaud during President Donald Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress on March 4, 2025. (Win McNamee\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

President Donald Trump will deliver the State of the Union address on Feb. 24. It will be his second speech to a joint session of Congress since returning to office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahead of the address, here\u2019s a look at U.S. public opinion on key policy issues, drawn from recent Pew Research Center surveys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About this research<\/strong><\/summary>\n

This Pew Research Center analysis summarizes U.S. public opinion on key policy issues ahead of President Donald Trump\u2019s 2026 State of the Union address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did we do this?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pew Research Center does research to help the public, media and decision-makers understand important topics. It is part of our regular work to understand how Americans feel about the policies and actions of the presidential administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about Pew Research Center<\/a> and our politics research<\/a>.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did we do this?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The findings in this analysis primarily come from Center surveys, most of which were conducted using the American Trends Panel (ATP). Details about these surveys, including the questionnaires, field dates and methodological information, can be found at the links in the text.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

U.S. economy<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

As has been the case since the coronavirus pandemic<\/a>, most Americans have a negative view of the nation\u2019s economy, according to a Center survey from January<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

About three-in-ten adults (28%) say national economic conditions are excellent or good. Far more (72%) rate conditions as only fair or poor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attitudes vary widely by party. Around half of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents (49%) say the economy is excellent or good \u2013 13 percentage points higher than in April 2025. Just 10% of Democrats and Democratic leaners say the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Views also differ by party when it comes to the effects of Trump\u2019s policies on the economy so far. A 57% majority of Republicans say Trump\u2019s policies have made the economy better, up 10 points since September. Only 3% of Democrats share this view. Democrats overwhelmingly say Trump\u2019s policies have made the economy worse (85%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall, 28% of Americans say the president\u2019s policies have made economic conditions better, while 52% say they have made the economy worse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Global tariffs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Tariffs have been a key economic tool for Trump during his second term. But in a major ruling on Feb. 20<\/a>, the U.S. Supreme Court threw much of the White House\u2019s tariff policy into question. The president has since called for a new 15% global tariff<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In our January survey \u2013 before the high court\u2019s ruling \u2013 Americans expressed more negative than positive views of Trump\u2019s tariffs. Six-in-ten disapproved of tariff increases<\/a>, while 37% approved. Nearly all Democrats (93%) disapproved, while a narrower majority of Republicans (71%) were in favor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Health care and other costs<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Americans\u2019 top economic concerns<\/a> this year include how much they pay for health care, housing, food and consumer goods, according to the January survey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Roughly seven-in-ten adults (71%) say they are very concerned about the cost of health care. Most say the same about the prices of food and consumer goods (66%) and housing (62%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than half of adults in each party say they are concerned about these issues. But Democrats express more concern<\/a> than Republicans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a separate survey conducted in November<\/a>, around two-thirds of Americans (66%) said the federal government has a responsibility to make sure all Americans have health care coverage. Yet this group is split over whether the government should ensure coverage using a single national program (35% favored this option) or a mix of private and public programs (31%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immigration enforcement<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"A<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Amid high-profile immigration enforcement efforts<\/a>, most Americans (72%) say it is unacceptable for federal immigration officers to use a person\u2019s looks or the language they speak as a reason to check their immigration status, according to the January survey<\/a>. Most (61%) also say it\u2019s unacceptable for officers to wear face coverings that hide their identities while working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The public is more divided when it comes to officers increasing their presence in neighborhoods where many immigrants live or arresting U.S. citizens who help others avoid immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to civilian responses<\/em> to enforcement efforts, majorities see it as acceptable for people to record video of immigration officers (74%) or share information about where arrests are happening (59%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Republicans and Democrats differ sharply on most of these questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Border security<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

While Americans are divided on several of Trump\u2019s immigration policies<\/a>, a 62% majority favors a strong military presence at the U.S.-Mexico border, according to the January survey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since Trump\u2019s return to office, U.S. Border Patrol encounters with migrants crossing into the United States from Mexico have fallen to their lowest level in more than 50 years<\/a>, according to a recent Center analysis of federal data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
In 2025, encounters with migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border fell to their lowest level since 1970<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Migrant encounters by U.S. Border Patrol at the U.S.-Mexico border, by fiscal year<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Note: Beginning in fiscal 2020, totals combine apprehensions and expulsions into a new category known as encounters. Totals before March 2020 include apprehensions only. Some migrants are encountered more than once.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
PEW RESEARCH CENTER<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

Share this chart<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t